As crazy as it may sound, Ross Atkins believes he has more things to worry about over the next week than who might be signing his paycheque in the coming years.

For public consumption anyway, the Blue Jays general manager shoved aside concerns of the possibility of the team being sold by parent company Rogers Communications, an explosive development that has suddenly become an unwelcome distraction to the team’s off-season.

In his world, Atkins has bigger concerns — like finding another starting pitcher, someone (anyone?) who can play the corner outfield positions and some depth in the infield.

A potential sale of the team is well above the pay grade of Atkins and team president Mark Shapiro, of course, but the possibility of an ownership change has implications for the future of a franchise that is at best unsettled.

The whispers of Rogers potentially pawning off the Jays had been increasing in volume in recent weeks and then became real this week when the company’s chief financial officer, Tony Staffieri, told the UBS Global Media and Communications conference in New York that it could soon be time for Rogers to cash in on the Jays.

In the present, Atkins vowed it will be business as usual as he heads to the Major League Baseball winter meetings next week in Orlando, Fla. And the Jays GM isn’t worried that the perception of potential ownership change will have an affect on potential moves, whether it be in making deals or in future big-money negotiations with current star players such as third baseman Josh Donaldson.

“I can only speak from the Toronto Blue Jays perspective, but not at all,” Atkins said on Wednesday when asked about the possibility of a sale getting in the way of his efforts to recover from a miserable 2017 season.

“We have so much freedom and flexibility with the way that we do operate … the way that we’ve articulated our strategy, our resources, our goals to agents and other teams, nothing has changed.”

Speaking at the annual awards luncheon of the Toronto chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, Atkins wasn’t about to elaborate on the specifics of what that strategy entails.

Tony Staffieri speaks at the Rogers annual general meeting in 2013 (THE CANADIAN PRESS)

Is a major rebuild looming?

Has management been given the bankroll to spend big on free agents to bolster the team and make 2015 American League MVP Donaldson the key building block for the future?

As for the immediate business at hand, current management group has no choice but to plow forward in what has been too quiet an off-season. And as Atkins stressed, nothing has changed in directives sent his way.

But the potential of Rogers selling the Jays at a time when it arguably has never been worth more is an intriguing development for a team that touches so much of the company business.

On any given game night, there are enough Rogers TV, radio and website reporters at the Rogers Centre to fill manager John Gibbons bullpen as the team provides upwards of four hours of programming for Rogers owned radio and television stations.

A sale wouldn’t necessarily end those deals — the parent company still values the massive ratings the team draws on Rogers Sportsnet and its radio network, especially when it is winning. But with a different owner, the renewal of rights could get interesting if Bell/TSN decides to get involved down the road.

In his comments at the conference, Staffieri cautioned that a sale isn’t imminent, but he readily acknowledged that the company sees some value in at least exploring the idea of cashing in on an asset that currently enjoys unprecedented popularity from coast-to-coast in this country.

A larger question, of course, is whether the Jays would be better off with a new owner in terms of remaining competitive among the big spending New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox of the AL East.

That would depend on who the buyer might be — and as of now, there’s no indication there’s a lineup of potential owners. But historically in its reign, Rogers has been knocked for not spending more of its vast resources on a team that brings it great profits both through the live gate at the dome and in television revenue.

As for the now, Atkins vows that ample resources are available and that the current ownership and management group is committed to returning to the post-season in 2018.

“Our ownership has only impacted me in a positive way,” Atkins said. “They’ve really helped us be a better organization and that will remain the same as far as I’m concerned.

“We feel we have everything that we need to run a good business and a good baseball team. We are comfortable with where things stand.”